


Bright Light

by Arribean



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-07
Updated: 2013-06-07
Packaged: 2017-12-14 06:33:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/833826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arribean/pseuds/Arribean
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jack is heading to his favorite place in the world when he experiences the pain of losing a believer for the first time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bright Light

As Jack was using the wind to carry him back home to Burgess, a sudden pain causes him to gasp out as he was over Asia. The wind wraps her comforting arms around him, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Jack shakes his head, not able to breathe in the environment that surrounded him. The wind senses his distress and calmly brings him back down to earth, making sure to give him one more caring touch to let him know that she was there should he have any need of her. Jack promptly collapses to the ground, curling up in pain and gasping for breath. It was worst then when Pitch had broken his staff all those years ago. This pain was not disappearing as quickly as the breaking of his staff did. Jack had been told about this pain, but he had never thought he would experience it as soon as he was.

The other guardians had once explained their connection with the children they loved and protected. When a child eventually forgot about the guardians they had so much believed in when they were a child, normally around the age of 12 or a little more, possibly even less depending on the situation, the guardians experienced no pain. It was like the guardian didn’t really know that they were missing until the child was actually gone. A child who believed in them that was ripped away from them by the means of death hurt. Of course it didn’t hurt badly, since the other guardians had thousands of kids who did believe in them. The belief of the others helped ease the pain, but it was still felt and each guardian had their own way of mourning that child. Jack did not have the softening blow of thousands of children blocking the pain.

In fact, he could feel the joy that was normally present in his oldest believers dimming, which seemed to make the pain he was experiencing even worst. The joy slipping from his believers could only mean one thing and it shook him to the core. Something bad had happened to one of the children who fiercely believed in him in Burgess. He had most of his believers there. His believers in Burgess consisted of every little child the original eight got to believe in him and, even at their older age, the original eight he had gotten the night they confronted Pitch. Finding believers was harder than he thought, but with every passing year he was getting more and five years ago, he didn’t have any, so he was happy with what he had. He had never been more happy to find a believer that had not been connected to the children in Burgess, knowing his influence was spreading even without the help of the children in Burgess. More and more believers were popping up. 

But he had just lost one.

Once the initial pain subsides, he picks up his staff, taking to the sky. He could feel the joy in everything around him, having finally found out that was his center, but he could feel when they were sad, when they no longer had joy. And the children of Burgess were not feeling joyful.

\---

The moment he touched down in Burgess, he knew something was wrong. He could feel it in the air around the town. He takes off to the Bennett household, knowing that Jamie might know what it wrong with everyone. Jamie always left his window opened a little so that if Jack wanted to give him a surprise visit, he could come right in. The moment he entered the boy’s room he knew something was wrong. It was late, really late. Glancing over at Jamie’s alarm clock let him know that it was past three in the morning. Jamie was not in his room. Jack goes through the house until he gets to Sophie’s room.

The girl was sitting on her bed, looking outside to the sky with the saddest expression he had ever seen on her before. “Sophie?” Jack questions, not knowing if he was entirely awake, because everything seemed off. Off in a way that would normally mean that you are sleeping. Her bright green eyes turn to him at the sound of his voice. And Jack’s heart drops when he sees that she had been crying. Jack quickly moves over to her, wrapping his arms around her as she starts crying again. He whispers little words of comfort, while rubbing her back as she cries her heart out. A pit of despair starts growing in Jack.

He never liked seeing kids sad. Especially when he could do nothing to help them. He always felt helpless when girls cried though. He thinks it is from the fact that he was a protective older brother to his sister, seeing his little sister cry had just about killed him. There are parts of him that are glad that he never came across his family when he became Jack Frost because he knew he would be mad at himself for not comforting her when he had the chance. But he could not change the past. His sister and parents were long gone.

When she finally runs out of tears to cry, she lets go of Jack, turning away from him. “Hey, what’s up kiddo? What’s with the long face?”

“It’s Jamie,” She whispers, Jack himself could barely hear it, but he did and he could only hope that it wasn’t what he thought.

“Where is Jamie?”

She turns, tears coming down her face again. Jack moves to comfort her, but she shakes her head, not wanting to bother him anymore with her tears. “There was an accident… he was coming home from the twins house. They had been working on a school project…” She stays silent for a long time and Jack doesn’t have the heart to say anything. “A-and he was… he was hit by a c-car.” Jack realizes at that moment the pain he felt was his first believer… Jamie… being taken away from him. “There was nothing that they could do and he… he died.”

Jack grabs Sophie, pulling her close to him. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here.” She shakes her head, already crying again. “You know who the best to hold on while crying is?” She looks up at him, as if asking him who. “Bunny. How about I bring you to see Bunny?” She nods, holding onto Jack tightly.

Years ago, Bunny had actually given him permission to come to the Warren whenever he wanted. All Jack had to do was tap his staff to the ground two, three times and Bunny would have a hole for him to go down relatively quickly. This time was no difference, but the silence of sliding down the tunnel was.

Bunny was close to where the tunnel let out. “What have I told you about using them just all the time,” He questions, getting ready for their normal arguments when he sees Sophie with Jack. “What are you doing here you little ankle-bitter?” His voice turns softer, seeing the little girl that had stolen his heart those few years ago.

Sophie lets go of Jack and runs into Bunny, burying her head in his soft fur before she starts crying again. Bunny looks to Jack with a confused look, but stops his question when he sees how depressed Jack actually looks. Jack heads over to where Bunny was standing.

“Jamie died,” Jack whispers so low that only Bunny could hear.

Bunny doesn’t say anything, just turns his attention to the girl who was crying, running his paws gently through her hair. It doesn’t take long for exhaustion to set in and for Sophie to fall to sleep. Both Jack and Bunny bring her back to her room, not wanting her parents to worry about her since they had just lost one child. Bunny looks like he is going to say something to Jack, but instead pats him on the back and then heads back to the Warren. Jack stays there in Sophie’s room, watching over her.

\---

The day of Jamie’s funeral there is a light rainfall going on. Jack had not meant for it to actually rain. It was supposed to be a gentle snowfall because he knew how much Jamie loved snow and that was all Jack would be able to do for him the day of his funeral. He takes a seat on one of the trees that was present. He stays the whole funeral, watching all of Jamie’s friends and family cry over the loss of such a bright and pure boy. The funeral made Jack think about how fragile humans were and how short their life span was. Within the next few decades Jack would witness the death of all his first believers and then after that the death of countless more, either by old age or a freak accident. It hurt to think about it like that, but the next few decades would be nothing to Jack, he was immortal and never-changing, but his believers they would live full lives, have children, grow old and… eventually die. Jack would remain the same as he had been three hundred years ago and the same he would be three hundred years from now. Time meant nothing to him, but everything with them. That was the only thing that they didn’t have enough of, but Jack had all the time in the world… and he always would.

How many people would he see die in his eternal life? How many believers would he gain and then lose to either death or disbelief? How long would he be able to handle it?

As the funeral comes to an end, Jack makes a promise to himself. He would spend all the time he had with his kids as best as he could. He didn’t know how many years he would get with each of them, so he would have to make the ones he did have count. Because who knew if he would see them the next time winter came around. By winter, the children might not believe in him anymore… or they might have ended up like Jamie.

Jack stands up, looking down to where the people of the cemetery were filling in the hole that held Jamie. He would always remember his first believer even when all his believers eventually forgot about him. He would continue to bring snowballs and fun-times to the kids that wished for snow days. And he would always remember them. It was the least he could do for them since they gave him some of the short precious time they had on this earth. He would bring the joy to block out bad times like this because no child should have to have a memory like this in their childhood. He would bring snow to those who wanted it, even if he had to fight summer heat.

He was a guardian and he was going to protect the joy that all children needed in their childhood.


End file.
